Beyond Both of Us
by Rhythm1029
Summary: Sometimes, things happen for no apparent reason, and we never find out why. And when we do find out, a number of other things happen with no reason themselves. But that doesn't mean it's meaningless. So follow Akihito and Kuriyama through the unreasonable meaningful events of their lives.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! This will be a very spontaneously updated fanfiction until I'm able to build up a few chapters for periodic updates. In any case, this fanfiction will be compromised of interactions between Akihito and Kuriyama and those two with others. This will more than likely be the premise of the beginning, as I can't seem to make a plot-less story unless turning it into a oneshot that I would more than likely never touch again. So as the story moves on, I'll hint at more action and what not. But for now, fluffiness and (hopefully) some laughs. Or a giggle. Or a smile. Or nothing... TT_TT **

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The gentle winds caught Akihito's hair, ruffling it up even more from its natural state. He let out a yawn, his head drooping low from tiredness as he walked to school. The subway was busy this morning, so his chance of sleep there was taken away. Even worse, Kuriyama had taken an earlier train with Sakura to tend to her bonsai plants. It wasn't the best morning for him, what with both his sleep and bespectacled beauty missing. But, he must go on, despite the oh-so difficult circumstances dealt to him.

With the school in sight, his speed picked up a little, anxious to see the refreshing sight of Kuriyama he had missed this morning. A smile came upon him as he fawned over her glasses that never failed to brighten up his day.

_Wait, glasses? Aren't I objectifying her a bit? W-well, it's not like I fawn over her herself. Yeah, it's not like that! _Akihito mulls over his thoughts as he comes to a standstill, leaning on the wall of the entrance. Meanwhile, a group of first-years walk past him, talking among themselves.

"I don't blame you for having a hair fetish, not with her hair," one of them said.

"Yeah, it's even more understandable since you have a crush on her."

"Ah, was it that obvious?" the third one said while scratching his head.

"They say that love creates new passions."

"Or emphasizes old ones."

_Crap._ Akihito started sweating, thoughts running through his head. So many thoughts that a headache started pulsating in his usually narrow-minded, glasses filled mind. He crouched and held his head, connecting the dots to his own dilemma.

"Senpai, what in the world are you doing?" a voice of melodic innocence inquired. Looking up, Akihito found himself face to face with the girl in question. Very close.

"Kuriyama-san!" Akihito jumped up, surprised by the close proximity of her face.

The gentle looking (but actually very much deadly) Kuriyama Mirai stood up, a confused look on her face. Her senpai was weird, but not usually this weird. His reaction towards her was even more unpleasant.

"How unpleasant," she stated her signature words. "What were you doing here senpai? People have given you weird looks." Behind her, a group of high school girls stared at him pointedly.

"Um, this wouldn't happen to count as public disturbance, would it?" Akihito sheepishly smiled as he picked himself up.

"Hopefully not," Kuriyama sighed. "The club still has an assignment due next week and there's no way we'll let you play hooky with the police."

"I wouldn't want to in the first place." He shivered at the thought of being taken into custody. His mom might actually come home if such trouble arose. Worse, they might search his house and find his secret stash of glasses and pictures. Pictures of girls in glasses of course.

The two would have had their usual banter if not for the bell. Both of them were already under heat for past tardies, so they decided to leave the routine conversation for later. As they went their separate ways, Sakura emerged from the shadows.

"Mirai forgot about me..." She looked around lazily, noticing everyone else had already gone to their respective classes. "Guess I can go home and sleep." As she turns to walk back, a rumbling noise could be heard from within the building.

"SAAAKUUURAAA!" the voice of Kuriyama echoed. She could be seen through the windows zigzagging down to the first story, a demon on a hunt.

"Tch!" Sakura let out a frustrated noise and got ready to leap away, but a cold hand caught her shoulder. She turned her head to find a very displeased sister. "How unpleasant."

"You're unpleasant, trying to skip school and all!" she began her nonstop scolding, not once letting go of Sakura. If she did, than Sakura would be gone in a flash. Meanwhile, the detainee thought of all her means of escape. Eventually, she settled for an underhanded, but effective, method.

"Senpai is taking pictures of you," Sakura bluntly stated in her monotone voice. In that instant, an opening appeared as Kuriyama jumped back and readied a book to use as a projectile towards the perverted senpai of hers. A gust of wind blew below her knees.

"Eh?" Kuriyama, confused, turned back around. "Senpai's on the other side of the build—" When she looked back, she was met with... nothing. She frowned as her glasses dropped down a bit. "She got away..."

A crow laughed from up above, circling the campus grounds in the sky.

"How unpleasant."

Then the bell rung.

"How very unpleasant."

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**Oh hi again! Hope you liked the first chapter. If you don't have a feel as to where this story is going, then don't worry; I don't either. Well, not yet anyways! Hopefully. **


	2. Chapter 2

**What'd I tell ya about spontaneous updates? Here's chapter two of Beyond Both of Us, hope you enjoy it. Oh, I'll be asking some questions at the end, so do read. Enjoy!**

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Kuriyama sighed and rested her head on the desk. She was now lazing about as she waited for the other members of the literary club to show up. The rays of dancing sunlight drowned the silent clubroom, refining the lazy atmosphere of the setting. This morning, she had been caught late and was given a mean scolding by her home room teacher. Earlier before that, she had arrived at the clubroom to find that a baseball had broken the window and decimated one of her bonsai plants. Bits of the busted pottery still remained here and there, along with a shard or two of glass. She really needed to consult Hiromi about summoning a barrier around the windows of the room.

"Yo, Kuriyama-san!" a merry voice greeted her as the door opened, blond hair and brown eyes swimming into the golden rays of the room. Akihito carried a plastic bag, filled with snacks no doubt. He set it down and tossed Kuriyama a steaming meat-bun, watching amusedly as she fumbled around with the hot dough. When she finally caught it, she took a bite and savored the taste.

"Howsh unpleashant," Kuriyama mumbled, her face practically buried in the bread.

"Once again, your actions say otherwise," Akihito laughed and grabbed a meat-bun himself, sitting across from her. They ate in silence, allowing the peaceful atmosphere to linger on.

"Sakura escaped, huh?" Akihito observed.

"Unpleasantly so," Kuriyama replied. "She tricked me and ran off. I must fail as a sister."

"Ah, well maybe she wasn't feeling well!"

"She was jumping from building to building."

"Restroom maybe?"

"There are multiple bathrooms in the campus."

"Um, maybe she was just doing some morning exercises?"

"Then mornings last longer than what I thought it did, seeing how she _never came back_?"

"Ehhhh... I've got nothing." Akihito gulped the last of his snack and lay his head on the desk, yawning from his own lack of sleep. As soon as he closed his eyes, his breath slowed down as he fell into a nap. It was a slow and tiring day today, so he believed he at least deserved a few minutes of shut-eye.

Kuriyama watched silently, nibbling on her snack. Without noticing, her eyes drifted towards the serene face of her sleeping senpai. She observed the content smile on his face, wondering just where his carefree attitude came from. More than likely from his mom, from what she's witnessed. A breeze enters from the window, flipping the pages of her open garden book. Strands of hair fall upon Akihito's face, making him sniff from the discomfort. Kuriyama reaches to brush it away, her fingers lingering a second longer as she makes contact with his skin. All of a sudden the door opens as two bickering siblings enter the once quiet room. Kuriyama jumped up and pretended to read her book, leaning on the wall.

"I would never look at another's little sister!" Hiromi sounded defensive, but unconvincing.

"By all means, please do, BUT—" Mitsuki turns around and points accusingly at her brother. "— don't you dare become a lolicon too! It's bad enough with your siscon personality."

"Oh, she wasn't that much younger from me!" Hiromi argued.

"She was ten!" Mitsuki glared at her brother, her purple fuzzy familiar growling due to its master's discontent.

"Huh, her feminine features seemed similar to Kuriyama's, so I just assumed—" Before Hiromi could finish, a flying book and a hostile familiar simultaneously attacked him, rendering him unconscious on the seat next to Akihito.

"Feminine features?" Mitsuki brushed her hair back and patted her familiar. "Pervert."

"How unpleasant," Kuriyama pushed her glasses up and shelved the thrown book.

"By the way, Kuriyama-san," Mitsuki rummages through her bag and brought out a box. "Ayaka-san told me these were for you."

"They arrived?" Kuriyama circled the table towards Mitsuki and accepted the small box. She took off her glasses and opened the box.

"So will this be permanent?" Mituski watched as Kuriyama fumbled with the transparent items. She looks toward Akihito and smiles, imagining the horrified reaction of glasses-boy. "If so, someone's not gonna be happy."

"How unpleasant," she huffed. Kuriyama carefully equipped the items, blinking multiple times from the discomforts. It was a new experience, and a terribly uncomfortable one at that, but it would benefit her in the long run. "These are only for during hunts, but I decided to try and break them in as soon as possible so it doesn't prove a hindrance." She pulls out a mirror and observes herself.

Meanwhile, Mitsuki pulls on Akihito's sleeve and beckons him to wake up. "Akkey, the glasses god have punished you for your sins."

"Nngh, no...sorry...didn't mean to... look through... the swimsuit magazine..." Akihito mumbled in his sleep. Drooling, he blinks a few times.

"Swimsuit maga— never mind, just wake up and see your misfortune," Mitsuki sat back and watched. Akihito slowly sat up, rubbing his eyes and wiping away his drool. He looks around the room lazily and spots Kuriyama looking into the mirror. Then there was Hiromi silently resting beside him in an awkward position.

"Hiromi?" Akihito lets out a yawn. "You took a nap too?"

"Look, a blimp!" Mitsuki points up at it in fake excitement. "Try reading what it says, Kuriyama-san."

Akihito walks up to her, glasses in hand. "Oh, here are your glasses so you can read—"

"Hmm, it says _'K. City Concert, August 15th'_," Kuriyama reads it without trouble. Akihito stops in his tracks, the atmosphere getting colder.

"Hah, no need to make things u—" Akihito starts, but once he looks outside, he sees the blimp and finds that she had read it correctly. "Huh, wah, how, eh?!" He looks back and forth from Kuriyama to the glasses in his hand. He does so for a few seconds before a box on the table catches his eyes. "_You_!"

"W-wait, senpai!" Kuriyama tries to explain herself, but Akihito ignored her. He quickly picks up the box and reads the words on it.

"_'Further Eye Contacts, For a farther point of view'_," Akihito reads the label, growing more and more disheartened.

"Senpai..." Kuriyama reaches out to him, but freezes as Akihito turns towards her.

"Ku-Kuriyama-san..." Akihito turns slowly, revealing a pouting face resembling a hurt puppy. Tears started forming as his frown quivered. From Mitsuki and Kuriyama's point of view, they saw an upset dog with its tail down. "How could you? Eye contacts? How could you abandon these poor, poor glasses?" He caresses the red frames of the glasses, pouting. All of a sudden, he runs out of the door, swearing he'll always stay loyal to the glasses.

Kuriyama follows muttering about his unpleasant behavior. Mitsuki takes out a lollipop and stares at the stack of books on the table. In front of her, Hiromi snored away as he was floating in his siscon wonderland.

"Guess we're not getting any work done today."

"It's okay you cute little glasses, Akihito will protect you," Akihito traced the red frames with his thumbs. He was currently crouching under a tree at the back of the school campus. Usually he would run to the bench at the neighborhood park, but he figured Kuriyama would find him in no time if he did retreat there.

The breeze from earlier in the morning was still present, if not more prominent. Akihito was thankful for his sweater vest as he watched other students shiver from each gust. If this was an anime, there would be skirts flipping up every which way.

"Ahh!" a high-pitched voice yelped. Akihito looked in front of him to see a flustered Kuriyama pulling her skirt down that was waving in the wind. Quickly he looked away, a tint of pink emerging on both their faces.

"Y-yo, Kuriyama-san!" Akihito stumbled. "N-nice of you to d-drop by. But I really gotta get going so if you excuse me I'll just be taking my leave—"

"Your behavior is beginning to be unpleasant," Kuriyama appeared in front of him, her blood-sword appearing on her side. A peeved look appeared on her face, resembling an angry squirrel. It took all of Akihito's will power not to laugh. "Please give me back my glasses, senpai."

"Why?" Akihito crossed his arms, a defiant look on his face. "So you can just throw them away?"

"No," Kuriyama relaxed, "So I can use them to see. So may I have them?"

"Eh? But what about your contacts?"

"They're only for hunts. It's not permanent." She pokes at her eyes and shows Akihito the two contacts.

Akihito sneered at the items on her fingers and scratched at it like a cat. "Get those sinful things away from me."

"How unpleasant," Kuriyama put the contacts in her pocket and crouched down to Akihito's level. "So may I please have my glasses back?"

"...Fine," Akihito relented after a few seconds of confliction. He bashfully handed her the glasses back, pouting like a child. "I still don't like the idea of you using contacts, though."

Kuriyama puts her glasses back on and blinked, satisfied with the familiarity. "If it'll make you feel any better, I'll try not to use contacts when you're around."

"Okay!" Akihito enthusiastically agreed. "Hmmm, Mitsuki's probably pissed at us for bailing the meeting. And we've got that anthology due next week! Crap, we better get back!" Without another word, he sprinted around the corner.

"How unpleasant," Kuriyama sighed in amusement. She takes out her box of contacts and ponders. "Do you really like glasses that much?" She throws the box into a nearby trashcan, a small smile on her face. "If so, then there's no helping it." Pushing her glasses up, Kuriyama stands up and stretches.

"Hey!" Akihito calls out to her from the corner of the building. "Don't think I'll let you play hooky too!"

"How unpleasant, I'm not like Sakura!" Kuriyama runs towards him, her glasses falling down slightly.

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**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Now as for questions:**

**- Should I keep referring Kuriyama Mirai as "Kuriyama", or should I change it to "Mirai"? **

**- Should I keep putting "how unpleasant" in its english form, or should I change it into romanji, "fuyukai-desu"?**

**Thanks for your time, and look forward to the next chapter!**


	3. Chapter 3

**IT'S ALIVE! Thankfully. Chapter 3 of Beyond Both of Us just for you ****_Akirai_**** shipping people. Enjoy~**

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"Uhhhggg..." Akihito groaned, stretching his arms up. He walked down the street with Kuriyama, the pale fiery tints of the fading day surrounding them. They were scolded by Mitsuki on their return and were forced to complete all the work by the end of the day. Hiromi and her were called back home suddenly, so him and Kuriyama were left to do all the work. But Akihito got to spend time with his bespectacled beauty, so everything was smooth sailing for him. Kuriyama herself on the other hand:

"I can't feel my fingers!" Kuriyama complained. "I've never written so much in my life. The literature club is practically a sweatshop!" She sobs silently, caressing her hands in a meek manner. In all honesty, Akihito was the one who wrote the most, but he decided to let the fact slide.

"Alright, alright," he patted Kuriyama's head gently. "The nightmare has passed, so I think a treat is in order!"

"Food?" Kuriyama inquired.

Akihito nodded enthusiastically. "Yup! Oh, but the usual place we go to is closed. Hmm, where should we go then?"

"Senpai, do you even have the money for any other restaurant?"

"True, we only go to the usual place because it's the cheapest," Akihito pondered over other options. He didn't think going across town just to buy from some food vendors would be fulfilling. So he really only had one more option. "Well, since I can't treat out, why don't I treat you myself? In fact, I actually spent most of my allowance buying groceries." He rubs his head sheepishly, flashing an embarrassed smile. Pink petals from the cherry-blossom trees around them surfed the invisible wisps of wind. Time stopped still as Kuriyama stared dumbfounded at Akihito. Her pulse grew quick, pink swimming on her cheeks.

"How unpleasant," she responded. Even so, she walks onto the street to Akihito's apartment, opposite of the route to her own her own.

"I'll take that as a yes," Akihito followed with a bounce in his step. The small smile on his lips never left on the way.

It wasn't the first time Kuriyama had been to Akihito's place, but she was still just as nervous. Excusing herself from intruding, she stepped into the warm room, her senpai's scent all over the place. It was a bit overwhelming.

"Did some spring cleaning recently, so there's not a mess in sight!" Akihito proudly declared.

"Oh, and what if I open this suspiciously locked closet?" Kuriyama gestured the only door locked within the room.

"Then we'd be victims of a landslide made up of a teenage boy's properties," Akihito answered. He leads Kuriyama to a seat and stalks off towards his kitchen.

"So I'd be right to assume that room is stuffed with your precious glasses related items?"

"Correct you would be," Akihito answered from the kitchen. His head was in his fridge, looking for eggs to create his usual rice omelets. There were none. "Crap," he voiced quietly.

"I don't suppose you were planning to serve rice omelets for dinner, were you?" Kuriyama accused.

"N-no, of course not..." Akihito refuted. "J-just wondering what I should make is all..." _This isn't good. Rice omelets are practically the only things I can make. And Kuriyama-san's cooking won't be much help either. _Akihito had to think up something fast. _But I guess two cooks are better than one. We're no chefs, so it should all be fine I guess._ _If all else fails, I'll order pizza._

"And I suppose you want both of us to cook?" Kuriyama nailed his thoughts. The look in his eyes made it obvious enough. In fact, she could tell what he was thinking for the most part by just his eyes. _Senpai is really just like an open book, _she thought.

"Either that or starve."

"How unpleasant." Kuriyama grabbed one of the two aprons on the wall and started gathering ingredients from the fridge. "Sakura does most of the cooking, but I help out here and there. It's only 4:50, so we have some time to make something proper." She begins to put all the ingredients in place and fiddled with a timer.

Akihito smiled, a thought crossing into his mind: "Feels like we're married." Except, it was more of a blurt than a passing thought. Kuriyama froze and turned to look at Akihito, both their faces growing red. They made eye-contact, their heart-beats seemingly in sync as all other noise was drowned out. But the timer in Kuriyama's hand pierced the veil of the temporary world between them. Both of them regaining their senses, they broke eye-contact, looking down at the floor.

"Unpleasant," Kuriyama mumbled. Akihito heard her meek voice and laughed silently. The two split the work between them, fewer words than normal exchanged. Akihito's remark had really shaken up the atmosphere between them; Kuriyama silent and observing and Akihito beating himself up internally for his loose mouth. In fifteen minutes or so, most of the ingredients were ready. Kuriyama looked at the meat in front of her hesitantly. She was supposed to season it, just as Sakura had told her, but with what she didn't know. In front of her, she had what she gathered from memory: soy sauce, salt, pepper, ginger, lemon, and garlic. Thankfully, Akihito came to rescue them from inevitable food poisoning.

"Ah, you use the salt, pepper, and soy sauce for the season," he explained. "The rest is during frying." He was currently separating the other ingredients and heating up the wok. It had taken him some time to cut them all up, him not being used to a knife. But Kuriyama had expertly cut all of her portions quickly and efficiently. Following Akihito's words, Kuriyama was officially done with her part of the ingredients. All that was left was the actual cooking.

"The wok is ready, we just need to put everything else in," Kuriyama stated. She placed the meat in, the wok sizzling on contact. Hesitantly, she moved the meat around, observing as to when she should put everything else in. After about five minutes, Akihito came up with the rest of the ingredients. He slid each portion into the wok one at a time, the aroma from the stir fry invading the room. Kuriyama held her grumbling stomach, hoping the sizzling from the food would cover it up. Unfortunately so, Akihito still heard the familiar rumbling, giving Kuriyama a teasing look.

"You know, if we mess this up we'll have to starve," he finished by giving a devious smile.

"Don't you dare..." Kuriyama gave a playful glare, knowing full well Akihito would be just as badly affected. She had gotten use to short bouts of hunger, seeing how she was near broke for awhile.

"Then get over here and stir this fry!" he gestures to the wok. "Unless you want ashes for dinner."

Now with the previous awkward atmosphere cleared, the two continued their task of cooking. Though, Kuriyama had some trouble stirring with just chopsticks. She complained about Akihito's lack of utensils, eyeing the cupboard left ajar containing only plates, cups, and chopsticks. Akihito argued that most of the stuff was plastic and broke often.

"Geez, just by silverware then."

"Do I look like someone who would buy silver and porcelain?" Akihito defended himself. "Anyways, if you don't stir more, all of it will more than likely burn. Here, you have to move the wok itself as well." He went behind Kuriyama and circled his arms around her, encompassing both her hands onto the handle of the wok. Kuriyama pretty much went limp the second their hands made contact. She looked down, her bangs covering her face. A tinge of pink made its way to her cheeks for the umpteenth time that day, her heart beating faster than the wok could sizzle. She followed Akihito's movements without much of a thought, her head dizzy from the close proximity of his body to hers. Noticing her lack of effort, Akihito craned his neck to look down at her. "Hey now, I'm the only one cooking at this point."

Kuriyama looks up to see his face even closer than before. She gives a small squeak and ducks under his arms. "Q-quite unpleasant. I'll set up the table and work on the rice. You continue with that yourself." On her tippy-toes, she grabbed the essentials and disappeared around the corner.

"So close," Akihito whispered.

Minutes later, the makeshift dinner table was set with steaming food plates for two. Washing up, the two sat before each other, their hunger invigorated by the sight.

"Ah, I forgot to tell Sakura I was having dinner with you!" Kuriyama went to her bag and fumbled through her books, looking for her phone.

_Hmmm. Dinner with me, huh? Sounds like a date. _Akihito mused while watching Kuriyama. The thought made him smile a little.

Meanwhile, Kuriyama finally found her phone. Resisting the urge to check her blog, she went into Sakura's messages to find the she didn't need to report her plans.

_Have fun on your dinner date with senpai, Mirai. -Sakura_

"W-w-wh-wha," Kuriyama stuttered. Seeing her distressed, Akihito crawls over to Kuriyama in worry.

"Something wrong?"

"N-n-no!" Kuriyama whipped her phone away from view. "We better eat before the food gets cold! Hahaha..." She crawled away from him to her seat. Akihito still sat there in confusion, wondering if he had done anything wrong. After a few minutes of fidgeting, Kuriyama calmed down and regained herself. She turns her head back, timidly looking at Akihito, a slight blush on her face. "A-are we going to eat or what?"

The innocence of her question made him laugh, which in turn had him receive a pillow to the face. He made his way to his seat, still amused by her actions. "Okay, let's dig in!"

"How unpleasant," she simply observed. But the second she took a taste, she mentally retracted her statement.

Outside, droplets from dark clouds above fell onto the ground. Soon enough, rain showered the streets of the city nonstop. Sakura smiled to no one in particular, looking at Kuriyama's umbrella leaning by the door at their apartment. "How extremely pleasant this situation must be." She takes out her phone begins to text Kuriyama.

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**Hold up, we're not done with this "visits home and has dinner" scenario yet. Well we are, but we'll transition into a connecting scenario. Some of you may or may not have already figured it out. Well, as always, look forward to the next chapter! **


	4. Chapter 4

**Welcome back! Here's chapter 4 of Beyond Both of Us. Hope you enjoy it!**

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"Well this is nice," Akihito commented. A strong wind buffeted his coat and hair to the side, a spray of rain showering him. "Guess mother nature doesn't like sarcasm."

"I can't go home in this weather!" a displeased Kuriyama yelled. She was currently shivering under the door frame, refusing to take a step out onto the wet ground. She had tried to call Sakura, but was only met with the answering machine or voice mail. "I swear, if she summoned a rain youmu or something just for this to happen..."

Hearing Kuriyama mumble under her breath, he pushed her back inside and closed the door. The temperature instantly became warmer, his heater running ever since they first entered. The weather forecast had said the chance of rain were below 10%. _Were the chances of a storm 90% then?_, Akihito thought. It was just his luck that the day he finally convinced Kuriyama visit, a storm popped up out of nowhere. Whether it was good or bad luck had yet to be decided, though. He took a side glance at the shivering Kuriyama who was fiddling on her phone. She was probably calling Sakura again or complaining on her blog.

"Both," she answered his thoughts. Akihito laughed it off and sat down on the floor. It was only then did he realized just how soaking wet he was. He gingerly peeled his jacket off and quickly threw it into the laundry in the bathroom. His other clothes weren't spared either.

"Ugh, and this was a new sweater too." Sulking, he made to take it off, but froze as he remembered that Kuriyama was still in the room. She was still fixed on her phone, but was also quite aware of the stripping senpai before her. "I'm, uh, gonna take a shower if you don't mind..."

"It is your house senpai," she said. Her head was buried under her locks of hair, her face hidden.

Quickly, he grabbed some clothes and made his way to the bathroom, closing and locking the door. Once she heard the click of the lock, Kuriyama looked up, her face flushed in pink. Her fingers had stopped typing on her blog the second Akihito reached for his sweater. It took all of her will power not to run out of the door right then and there... or do something worse. She shook her head vigorously, trying to get the image of a topless Akihito out of her head. The sound of the shower starting didn't help. In a hopeless attempt to ignore him, Kuriyama browsed about on her blog about gardening. Pictures of roses didn't help either.

After a hot shower, Akihito was refreshed. Wrapping a towel around his waist, he made for the door. The second he put his hand on the knob, a voice brought him to his senses.

"Senpai, you've been in there for more than an hour," Kuriyama stated. "Are you alright?" With a start, Akihito jumped back, completely forgetting about Kuriyama who was waiting outside the door.

Calming himself down, Akihito began dressing and answered. "Y-yeah! Just dressing up, I'll be out soon."

"If you say so."

Minutes of silence passed between them, both parties feeling too awkward to speak. When he was fully dressed, Akihito stepped out, his hair a mess from trying to dry it. He wore a long-sleeved shirt and fitted sweat pants. He looked to the side, avoiding eye contact with Kuriyama. Looking outside his window, he sees that the storm was still raging outside. The windows rattled from the wind, the occasional whistles of strong gusts sounding off outside.

Kuriyama on the other hand was fixed on Akihito. She stared at him, entranced by the outline of his body that his thin shirt showed. He wasn't on Hiromi's physique level, but Akihito was quite toned himself. It was more than likely due to running away from youmus, but he had a build sufficient for a spirit warrior. Her cheeks heated up, realizing how creepy she was being. She tore her eyes away from Akihito, hoping that he didn't notice her staring. Fortunately he didn't, but he did notice her flush face. Worried, he crouches to her level and feels her forehead.

"Are you sick?" he inquired. "Is your anemia acting up?" Kuriyama froze the second his warm hand made contact with her forehead. Usually she would jerk back and shout in surprise, but his gentleness captured her attention. She looked into his eyes, noticing the genuine worry he was showing. Her shoulders grew less tense, a funny feeling bubbling up in her. Their faces were less than a foot away from each other, both of them staring intently at one another.

Akihito's breath got caught, unable to break the connection of his hand to her smooth skin. He felt the heat on her face rise, but he could tell that it wasn't from an illness. Feeling his own face heat up, Akihito bit his lip, pondering as to what he should do. The opportunity was right there, not a shred of resistance from her. If anything, her soft lips seemed to call him. The red frames of her glasses framed her twinkling eyes, a torrent of emotions swelling and crashing within them. He was sure his eyes showed just the same. Placing his other hand on the floor to support him, Akihito slowly leaned in, both of their eyes lulling to a gentle close. Their hearts raced, both being unable to comprehend what was happening.

_BOOM!_

A flash of lightning brightened the room. Once it disappeared, all of the lights in the room disappeared as well. Akihito was tackled down, choking a bit as the air in him was pushed out. Thankfully, his head was met with the soft carpeted floor. He winced on impact, but otherwise was uninjured. A foreign weight was on top of him, the figure quivering helplessly. Kuriyama was laying on him, grasping his shirt for dear life. Her face was buried into his chest, only looking up when Akihito called her name. She had a dazed look, but her eyes showed a tinge of fear.

Without a word, Akihito patted her head and gave her a reassuring smile. Kuriyama put her head back down, eyes closed in an attempt to calm down. The room was pitch black and silent. Akihito sat up a little and continued to comfort Kuriyama. He held her in one arm, propping her to sit on his thigh. They stayed like that for awhile, not a word exchanged. Though a bit bummed from losing his chance on a kiss, Akihito was content with holding her close to him. He was glad that she trusted him enough to be this close to her. Now the next step was to get her talking.

"Kuriyama-san," he gently called. She responded by only burying herself closer to him. He tried calling her a few more times, but was met with no response. Having enough of her stubbornness, he spoke with a stern and final tone. "Kuriyama-san. I can't help you if you don't tell me anything."

She whispered a muffled response, but Akihito caught the usual tone and deemed it to be another one of her "unpleasant" remarks. Sighing, he brought up his courage and took action. Sliding one hand under her knees, and another under her back, her carried her bridal style and set her on his bed in a sitting position. A blanket was thrown on her, halting her resistance. He sat on the floor in front of her with a stubborn pout on. His face said it all: _Tell me or I'll be sad_.

"This is unpleasant..." Kuriyama wrapped the blanket around her tighter, smelling Akihito's scent on it. She took a few breathes to calm down, finding no other way around from explaining herself. Reluctantly, she started. "The dark... it reminds me of the Hollow Shadow. When Yui was... when Yui was captured by it, a swirl of darkness surrounded us. Everything was black and I couldn't see anything. I was scared, more than I've ever had been..."

She hugged her knees, the blanket completely enveloping all but her face. Her body still shook lightly, looking the most defenseless that he's ever seen her as. A sense of protectiveness surged within Akihito, his body moving on its own.

He sat next to her and threw the blanket on both of them. Swiftly pulling her into an embrace, he nestled he face into the crook of her neck, whispering reassuring words into her ear. They sat there for about an hour, the storm's presence outside being drowned out by their content breathing. When Akihito looked up at his clock, it was already nine. Kuriyama followed his eyes to the clock as well, but showed no reaction to the time. She only buried her face back into his chest.

"Would you like to stay over for the night, Kuriyama-san?" Akihito offered. She took up the offer and asked if she could wash up. He smiled at her childish look and offered her some clothes.

Reluctantly, Akihito let her go and gave her some clothes. Luckily, he had a pair of sweat pants from his middle school days that would fit her. But as for shirts, his smallest still would reach to her mid-thighs. She still accepted them though, explaining that Sakura and her usually wore oversized shirts for sleep. The images in Akihito's mind turned his face red.

Laying a few blankets on the floor for him to sleep on, Akihito went over the events of today. In the beginning, his only motive really was to offer Kuriyama some food. But as the events went on, a fuzzy feeling made him push his boundaries around her. And now, after experiencing her body heat and soft skin, he was obsessed. When he wrapped his hands around her small frame, it felt so right. When he buried his face into the crook of her neck, her scent was intoxicating. It was a surprise that he was even able to let go of her. Now he pitifully sat on the floor, missing her touch.

When she came out of the shower, he gawked at the innocent look she posed. She fiddled with her fingers, a blush on her face. The shirt was big on her, as expected, and the sweatpants passed her ankles. With her red framed glasses topping off the look, she was innocently beautiful.

"W-what?" she stuttered. Kuriyama was completely aware of Akihito's stare, making her both proud and embarrassed. She notice that he had lit up a few candles and scattered them around the room as makeshift light sources, but they also proved to hint at a double meaning. Trying to ignore those thoughts, she checks her phone, planning to inform Sakura of how she was sleeping.

_Don't worry Mirai. Just make sure to control your urges. - Sakura_

Deleting the message instantly, Kuriyama shoved the phone into the bottom of her bag. With a huff, she laid on the bed and wrapped herself in the blanket protectively. "Goodnight."

Surprised by her sudden change of attitude, Akihito blinked in wonder. He wondered if he did something wrong, but was too tired to pursue the subject. Staring at the ceiling, he waited for Kuriyama's breath to steady. After a few minutes of waiting, he deemed her asleep. Going around the house, he blew out the candles, dark spots appearing with every quenched light.

When everything was out, he made his way back to his area. He bent to lay back down, but his shirt was pulled to the side. Kuriyama grasped the end of his shirt, tugging it towards her. She lifts her head up and stares him in the eyes.

"Unpleasant..." she weakly uttered.

Akihito's knees go weak and finds himself crawling onto the bed. His heart started beating like crazy, but it subsided just as quickly once he embraced her. A content smile curled on his lips, burying his face into her soft hair, inhaling her scent. Wrapping the blanket around them, they snuggled into each other, the sounds of the storm fading as they drifted asleep.


End file.
